Facebook’s Poke app, a copy of red-hot Snapchat rose almost to the top of the iTunes appstore on launch. A few days later it has tanked, making me wonder: can Facebook really invent any new Internet behavior or is it destined to be a copycat forever?

It seems to me that Zuck did great creating the concept of Facebook, but that’s where things stopped. The ability to invent or create beyond that initial concept has escaped everyone at Facebook.

Rick

They were not able to capture the attention of the Instagram community either, so the acquired it. No surprise.

lucascott

Perhaps the issue is that they are trying to be too much. Rather like when Google left their original ‘a search box nothing else needed’ attitude behind.

The original Facebook was developed out of the old BBS days adding in sharing photos etc and some very useful filters for selective sharing. The whole Pages thing was also a nice way to celebs to join in the fun in a ‘safe’ way.

But then they tried to add every possible thing and it has become this nasty mess. Worse in that they keep fixing a UI that really isn’t broken. Well it wasn’t, I’d say it is now.

quietstorms

Perhaps the issue is that they are trying to be too much.

This isn’t the issue. It’s the perception of privacy which Snapchat offers (teens think its private) even though it seems many forget that you can just take a screenshot of the good stuff.

Snapchat is really just a feature and won’t last long as its own dedicated app. It looks ugly and there are holes in its main purpose.

Zuck ripped off most of Facebook too. He’s not original, he’s just very successful.

tylernol

I do not want the naughty photos Scarlet sends me to tied up in the rat’s nest of Facebook’s privacy policies and monetization of its users.

Domicinator

Privacy policies aside, why does Facebook NEED to invent “new internet behavior”? Is this where we are as a society now? If a company doesn’t change the world completely twice a year, they are failing to invent or innovate?

People accuse Apple, Google, and Facebook of this all the time. How many life changing inventions per day do we need to have? How about using and enjoying the things we have, because what we have is already amazing?

I’m not saying Facebook doesn’t need to make changes–they totally do. But they don’t need to re-invent the wheel every 6 months any more than any other company does.

It depends on the type of success the company wants to have. Making a brand that becomes synonymous with the product is a great way to make a business, and I’m sure Xerox and Kleenex were (rightfully) happy with their success.

Can Facebook keep selling their product for the next fifty years? Do they need to establish themselves as a creator of new ideas, rather than as a specific product, in the minds of their consumers/users?